Some Matanuska River landowners want government help — just not the kind they’re getting

SUTTON — Mike Pearson scrawled a note to the Matanuska-Susitna Borough on a boarded-up building teetering along the Matanuska River's rapidly disappearing banks just outside Sutton."WHY NO HELP?? THANKS – MSB – 4 NOTHING. GOOD JOB GOV!!"But as the ever-hungry Matanuska threatens to consume more homes, the kind of help residents want from the local government may not be the kind it can offer.Officials say the borough proposed plenty of action over the years, such as new erosion control districts or buyouts. Many property owners chose not to participate.Now, after seeing how the state manipulated the riverbed to protect highways, residents in the Matanuska's potential path in Butte and Sutton are pressing for fixes — they've seen the state build two...